


The Waltz

by cheesyficwriter



Series: Sixth Year Ball [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Humor, Friendship/Love, Short & Sweet, Teen Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-10
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-14 11:01:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,593
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28669656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cheesyficwriter/pseuds/cheesyficwriter
Summary: One-shot, 6th year (canon compliant). Ron gets the opportunity to ask a certain someone to dance...will she accept? A short and sweet Romione ficlet.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Series: Sixth Year Ball [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2175219
Comments: 25
Kudos: 45





	The Waltz

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any related characters. 
> 
> A/N: Hello again all! Happy Sunday! Hope you guys enjoy this quick one-shot. It's filled with all the sweetness and fluff, cause who doesn't need that from time to time? The next chapter of Lost in Translation should be up tomorrow. Happy reading :)

**The Waltz**

* * *

If there was one particular thing in Ron Weasley’s life that he loathed, it would be dancing. Although he didn’t have much experience with the activity, the few events in his life that he recalled there to have dancing as an option had turned out, well, quite disastrous at best. 

The first time he remembered dancing was with his little sister, Ginny, at a family wedding when he was six and she was five. She stood on his toes as they swayed, listening to the sounds of his mum cooing at how adorable they looked. Ron was at a stage in his life where everything was embarrassing for him, so all he remembers after that was pushing his sister off of him and marching out of the room as she cried. Not exactly his finest moment. 

Then, there was the great catastrophe that was the Yule Ball in 4th year. He didn’t actually dance at the ball, but instead chose to sit on the sidelines feeling sorry for himself and grumbling as he watched Hermione sodding Granger twirl around with Viktor sodding Krum. Safe to say, when the night ended in a shouting match with Hermione and her storming off in tears, it was yet again not his finest moment. 

Flash forward to the present and Ron’s worst nightmare. Professor McGonagall had called the entire 6th year class into one room to announce that Hogwarts would yet again be hosting another ball. _Great,_ Ron grumbled to himself, _Yet another opportunity for me to fuck it all up._

It was almost as if McGonagall could hear his thoughts, as she chose that precise moment to beckon him front and center. “Mr. Weasley! Come on up, you can help me demonstrate a simple Waltz.”

Ron’s eyes widened as his friends snickered around him. He gave Harry a sharp shove on his shoulder before shuffling his feet through the crowd of students, moving to stand in front of McGonagall, who was waiting impatiently. 

“Now, Mr. Weasley, I need you to put one hand on my waist.” _Oh bloody hell, fuck no._

Ron was certain that his face resembled a shade similar to a tomato and tried his hardest to avoid the stares of his laughing classmates. “We don’t have all day, Mr. Weasley,” Professor reminded him and he hastily positioned his hands just as his mother had taught him all those years ago. 

“Right, now we are going to move our feet in a three-step motion. Just follow my lead…” McGonagall started to glide her feet side to side, then back, then side to side again. Ron clumsily followed along, trying not to look the professor directly in the eye. Surprisingly, this wasn’t his first Waltz and he was entirely grateful for his mum at this moment for actually teaching him some bloody useful dance moves. “One, two, three...one, two, three…”

"Very good, Mr. Weasley. Now, pick your partner." 

"Wh-what?" Ron fumbled. 

Professor McGonagall kinked an eyebrow and waved her arm over towards the rest of the students. "Ask someone to join you in a dance, Mr. Weasley, that way everyone else can join." 

Ron gulped. _Why oh why_ did he have to be the one everyone was staring at while this was happening? His palms were starting to sweat, his knuckles were turning white, and his face was likely the same shade of red as his hair. Ron tried to ignore the catcalls and wolf whistles that came from his mates. He scanned his eyes through the crowd of girls. Lavender Brown winked at him and twirled her hair, Padma Patil avoided his eyes (rightfully so after that disastrous date to the Yule Ball), and then...there was Hermione. She was standing in the corner of the room, her hands clasped together down by the skirt of her uniform. She was looking at him and he almost missed her biting her lip out of what seemed to be...nervousness. When she noticed him unabashedly studying her as the room fell silent, her lips parted in surprise. It was an innocent gesture, but it filled Ron with all the courage he needed to walk determinedly over to her. 

Hermione inhaled sharply as he drew closer to her. 

Ron held out his hand and smiled. "Come and dance." 

Hermione stared down at his inviting hand for a moment before gently placing her hand in his. _Merlin,_ her hand was warm and fit so perfectly into his. When she looked back up at him, she had a wide grin displayed on her face. 

Ron pulled her gently into the center of the dance floor, trying desperately to drown out the whispers and stares they were likely getting from their classmates. 

Music started to softly play in the back and Ron paused in front of Hermione, unsure of what to do next. 

"Just like we practiced, Mr. Weasley," McGonagall encouraged.

Ron shuffled from side to side on his feet, slowly swaying the hand he had joined with Hermione’s. He was having quite a bit of trouble focusing on what he should be doing when all he could think about was the fact that he was touching Hermione Granger and had actually mucked up the courage to ask her to dance. In front of the _whole sodding class_ . And she actually _accepted._

"Ron," Hermione hissed, bringing his attention back to her. "Put your hands on my waist." 

" _Oh,"_ he realized as he timidly wrapped his free arm around her lower back, holding his grip on her other hand tightly. He was certain that his palms were so sweaty that she had to be grossed out by his perspiration. 

Instinctively, Ron took a step forward and pulled her body closer to his, eliciting a gasp from Hermione’s mouth. They locked eyes for a brief moment and Ron wondered if she felt the same jolt of electricity through her body as he did. 

The music shifted to a soft, classical number and Ron started to turn slowly in a circle. He was looking down at his feet as he guided Hermione around the room, determined not to step on her toes. 

“Mr. Weasley, head up!” McGonagall instructed. 

Ron groaned inwardly and lifted his head, meeting Hermione’s tentative gaze. _Was it possible that she was just as nervous as he was?_

It seemed as if Professor McGonagall had decided she was done letting the other students remain as spectators and she chose that moment to invite all of the others to grab a partner and make their way to the dance floor. _Oh thank Merlin,_ Ron thought in his mind. 

The awkwardness between Ron and Hermione faded slightly and Hermione sent Ron an encouraging smile. “Do you want to move a bit closer?” Her whispered voice tickled his ears. 

Ron visibly gulped, his eyes shifting downward to view the large gap in between their bodies. Hermione didn’t wait for his response before taking control of the situation and taking a step forward so that their chests brushed together. 

_Bloody fucking hell._

Ron wasn’t quite sure how his feet were still moving. But, he gathered that they were, as mere seconds later Hermione had managed to let out a sharp hiss. “Ouch! _Ron,_ you stepped on my foot.”

Ron gazed down immediately and removed his foot from atop of hers. “Ooph, sorry,” he mumbled, drawing his lip back into his mouth with his teeth. 

Hermione squeezed his hand gently. “It’s okay, Ron. It’s just me. Relax.”

_Just you,_ Ron laughed in his mind. She didn’t know that she could never be _just_ Hermione to him. Dancing with her, right here and now, was _everything_ and he was managing to screw it up in excellent fashion. 

While Ron was consumed with his own private thoughts, he didn’t realize that the expression on Hermione’s face had shifted to curiosity, as she closely examined the now tender look he was giving her. 

“Ron...why did you ask _me_ to dance?” It was a clear question that didn’t need an answer like _Because I was forced to by McGonagall._ It deserved a more honest explanation. 

Ron shrugged and blushed. “‘Cause I knew I would enjoy dancing a bit more if it was with you.” Simply saying that she was his best friend didn’t seem to be a fitting enough answer. 

Hermione opened her mouth to respond, but clamped her mouth shut again before the words came out and had seemingly decided against it. Ron wondered briefly what she was going to say. 

“M’sorry if I embarrassed you,” Ron muttered. He was certain that Hermione had only accepted his offer to be polite, given the fact that they were being watched by all of their peers. 

“Never…” Hermione whispered earnestly. She beamed from ear to ear, just before leaning forward to rest her head comfortably on his shoulder. They were no longer flowing to the tempo of the song playing, but neither managed to care as other couples floated around them. 

Ron caught a whiff of Hermione’s shampoo from her hair and he closed his eyes in silent appreciation. He couldn’t believe that this was his life right now. The girl he fancied was seemingly _enjoying_ her current position in his arms and wasn’t revolting away from him. 

Ron caught Harry’s eyes briefly over Hermione’s head and he swore that Harry gave him a brisk wink before dancing away. 

“Thank you for finally asking me to dance…” Hermione breathed out into Ron’s shoulder and he tightened his arms around her waist. 

“Thank you for saying yes.”


End file.
